Christmas 2008

Christmas time has come and gone once again. We had such a good Christmas this year. It was definately challenging financial wise, as I am sure a lot of you can relate, but in the end it was very nice.

We spent the holiday with my parents this year. We went over on Christmas Eve. My family has a tradition that on Christmas Eve night we go over to Grandpa and Grandma Mortensen's house, have dinner, and then have a program. We have taken the program out of the Home Evening manual through the church and added a few extra touches to it. I have always loved being envolved in this. This just helps to bring Christ into the picture more. I love listening to my family sing the Christmas songs and since there isn't a piano or a piano player it is all a capella. The spirit is always so strong there and it has always been one of my favorite parts of Christmas.

Christmas morning the first call for presents came at around 3:45 or so. Avery woke up and told Dave that she wanted to open her presenents (sounds like presidents) as she calls them. Dave quickly told her no and so we went back to sleep. Then around 6:00 Emmabelle woke up so I took her in the living room and waited for Avery to wake up on her own. We had a late night, and she hadn't slept very well through the night. She got up around 6:30 and then the fun began. Avery and Emmabelle were the only grandkids there so they were the center of attention. My sister Lori was also there with us. When Avery first got in there she wasn't quite awake and so she wasn't too excited. After I showed her her stocking and the fun things in it she was ready for the rest. Santa brought the girls new swings. Dave is going to build them a swing set in the back yard. Avery will be so excited once it is finally up. For Christmas this year Dave and I decided that we were going to give ourselves a weekend get away. So sometime in January my mom will come over and watch the girls so we can have a much needed weekend to ourselves. I am very excited about this. We weren't suppose to get each other any presents, but being the most amazing husband in the world he didn't stick to the rules. He spoils me too much. He also got me a small nativity. It just has Mary Joseph and baby Jesus and it lights up with a tea light. It is so pretty though, when I saw it in the church book store I fell in love with it, and he also got me the Alpha and Omega picture of Christ for my home. The other big gift that we got that Dave and I are excited for is the Food Saver that we got from my parents, and they also helped us can some beef, chicken, butter, and pancake mix to help us with our year supply.

Emmabelle playing with the gifts from Santa.

The first face I got from Avery. She wasn't quite ready for all the happenings.

Avery looking at her gifts from Santa.

Emmabelle opening her first Christmas gift.

Avery finally warming up to the whole experience.

Grandma bought gingerbreadmen for the kids to decorate.

We had Christmas dinner at my grandparents house. Those in attendence were Grandpa and Grandma Mortensen, my Uncle Jim and Aunt Marie, my parents, Lori , Clint, Nicole and their kids, and then Dave, the kids and I. My Aunt Rosanne and Uncle David were suppose to come, but they ended up coming down with something. So Christmas morning my mom and I spent the morning cooking our little hearts out to get Christmas dinner ready. We cooked both a ham and a turkey, mashed potatos, sweet potatos, stuffing, and rolls. It was a very busy morning, but dinner turned out delicious. We spent the day enjoying each other's company.

Avery rocking with the reindeer.

Emmabelle actually let Papa Great hold her. It was a miracle.

Emmabelle playing with Aunt Lori.

Emmabelle showing off her attempts at crawling.

The day after Christmas we spent canning food with Mom and Dad. They bought a whole bunch of beef, chicken, butter, and pancake mix. We used the pressure cooker for the meat, and then the Food Saver for the pancake mix. The butter is done by melting it in a pot and then putting it in the jars putting lids on and then shaking it about every five minutes or so until it cools and then putting it in the fridge and contiue shaking it until it solidifies again. It was a fun day and it has gotten me a little more excited about food storage. That evening my Uncle Wil and Aunt Robyn and their family came to visit, so we went back over to Grandpa and Grandma Mortensen's to visit. We also had a snow strom blow in and it ended up covering the ground.

Marcy, Merry, Avery, and Grandma Mortensen working on building a snowman.

It ended up being a snowbaby.

Here's a close up, isn't it cute.

On Saturday the boys were finally able to go coyote hunting. Before today it had been to windy to go. Dave was very excited. The girls just ended up hanging around the house. The kids did finally talk Grandma into taking them outside to play. I went out to take pictures. I hate the snow and so I didn't want to stay out there to long. They ended up making a snowbaby. I don't think we can actually call it a snowman. It was pretty small, but with a five year old and two, two year olds helping Grandma I think it turned out pretty cute. The kids had fun and once they got to cold came back inside and enjoyed playing games. The hunting party was partly successful. They were able to call in a dog and Dave even hit it, but they weren't able to find it. Clint and Nicole's family had to go home so she could work. Dave and Dad ended up going back out that evening and Mom was a champ and took care of the girls because I ended up getting a migraine. It was a fun day though.

Sunday we just went to church and then over to Grandpa and Grandma Mortensen's for Sunday dinner, so we could visit with Wil's family some more before they had to go. Dave and I were also going home so it was nice to be able to see everyone before that.

Emmabelle in her Christmas dress.

Avery's Christmas dress.

Two cute girls.

And a dang good looking family.

It was such a good weekend and very relaxing. Dave and I always enjoy getting out of town, spending time with family, and enjoying some much needed relaxation. Thanks to all the family who made our Christmas special.

Fall Leaves

Well the time finally came again to rake the leaves in our front yard. Our tree has a habit of dropping all of it's leaves on the same day. It just decides it is done with the leaf thing and poof they just drop like flies. The girls really had fun playing in them. Avery was a little upset, I had tried to take her picture in the tree and she ended up hitting her head on one of the branches and that was it. But she ended up having a good time after a little coaxing from me. We had a nice little leaf war and Avery just thought that was so fun.

This is Avery before she decided to have fun. Pretty pitiful huh.

Now we are liking it a little more.

Emmabelle helping to cheer her sister up.

Avery buried in the leaves.

Emmabelle really had a great time playing in the leaves. She was a little leary at first but really enjoyed it after a few minutes. She especially liked it when we threw the leaves in the air. She even did really good not to eat any, which has been a challenge in times past.

Christmas Stockings

Here is a picture of our stockings. I have always loved my stocking. It is just another thing that ties us all together as a family. I really love the closeness that we all share. Dave, the kids and I were driving around looking at Christmas lights on Sunday night and we drove by a house and in the front yard were about a dozen kids just playing and laughing and having fun. It made me remember when we were little and all got together at Grandpa and Grandma's house. It is so wonderful to have so much family and to be able to share such a close bond. I hope that it continues through the years.

Emmabelle hits some milestones.

I am so excited to announce that today my baby said mama. Yep that is right after babbling dada for a few weeks now she finally uttered the word mama. Although it wasn't intentional or meant she was talking about me it does not matter. Those two beautiful syllables came out of her little mouth. She was hungry and ready for her bottle this morning and as I took her to feed her she cried mama. It made me so happy.

She also surprised me with another accomplishment. She sat up from a laying position. We were in the mothers lounge at church and she was playing on the floor and all the sudden she just sat right up. She has yet to do it again, but she is changing so much. Pretty soon she will be running through the house with her sister.

Random Thoughts.

Just wanted to let ya know that we are still alive. I haven't had much to post about lately, you would think with the season I would have so much to say, but in all honesty much hasn't been happening. We had our ward Christmas party last Saturday. It was ok. I have decided that I must have just been overly spoiled growing up in Animas, because I have never had any holiday or activity compare to those we had in Animas growing up. They didn't even have a Santa for the kids. We did graduate from mexican food though, don't get me wrong I love the stuff, but how many different variations of enchilada's can you have. This year we had ham and turkey. The members of the ward brought all the sides and desserts. We enjoyed a nice meal, and then they showed the video "Joy to the World". The company was good and the food was great, but I guess I just need to stop comparing everything to Animas, we are just in a class of our own. The only problem with that is I want my children to enjoy the same experiences I had. Tree festivals, Christmas programs, and just plain community unity. The members here are nice enough, but it just isn't the same. My biggest fear is the only way to fix it is get more envoloved and I just don't know how I really feel about that. I apologize for my ranting, sometimes it just has to be done.

We are all doing well. We just got over some colds, the girls still have coughs. Avery keeps trying to convince me that she needs medicine. It is a lose lose situation if you ask me, they make it taste good so they will take it, but then they don't understand when you tell them they can't have the good tasting medicine. I just tell her that the bottle said I couldn't give her anymore. That seems to work until the next time she has a coughing fit and then we repeat the scenario. She is getting very excited for Christmas. I am trying to work the Savior in their more. She got upset though when I told her that we were celebrating Jesus' birthday and not hers. She wanted it to be her party and not Jesus'. Another fun thing is randomly throughout the day she will just pipe up and say "It's almost Christmas time." with the biggest smile on her face.

Emmabelle is getting so big. I can hardly believe it. She is starting to scoot around the floor more. Still not crawling fully. She just can't quite figure it out. I am still not sure how much she weighs, but I am sure it is not far from her sister. She is quite solid. She is such a good baby and I feel greatly blessed for that.

Dave is also doing well. The business is still plugging along. He has been surprisingly busy for December. We hope and pray that it continues. He is still enjoying the scouting program. Most of his older boys just moved up a class so he has a pretty young group and is having to start over on getting them to rank. He is busy trying to plan the big campouts for the summer. They were suppose to go to Geronimo, but decided that he could do all the same stuff at much less of a cost so now he has to get all that planned so he can include it in the budget for next year.

There isn't much to say about me. I have enjoyed decorating my house for the Christmas season and enjoy spending my time with the kids. I am sad that my scrapbooking class has ended. I was very productive this semester and ended up finishing Avery's first year. I will have to take some pictures of my favorite pages and post them. I had so much fun. The college has a great class and I had access to a lot of materials that I wouldn't normally have. I hope to be able to take it again next semester. We shall see.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year. I don't know if I will post again before then so God Bless and enjoy.

Safford Light Festival

On Saturday night we were able to get together with some family and friends and go to the Safford Light Festival. Those in attendance were my family, Clint, Nicole, Marcy, Merry, Kevin, Brianne, and Chancey. My parents actually surprised us and showed up at the festival and Justin, Cassie, Kabri, and Paxton Echols joined us for the light parade. The festivies started at 5:00. We took the kids to see Santa on Main Street. They had a small little house for him, it was really cute.

Chancey Mortensen with Santa.

After we saw Santa we just walked down Main Street. There were some vendors, and they also had a stage set up where they were doing some performances and some other entertainment. We didn't watch to much of that. After we saw all there was to see we found the place that we wanted to sit and watch the parade and sat there for about an hour and a half. The light parade didn't actually start until 7:00 and then we were about at the half way mark. We were pretty disappointed with the parade. It was very drawn out. The floats were about a block apart. It took them forever to get to us and once they did they drove so fast by us we didn't really get to enjoy them. We did find out that towards the beginning of the parade they were doing some commentating and so that is what was holding up the show, but it was pretty bad. We ended up leaving early due to cranky kids and just sheer frustration. The floats we did see were really nice. My favorite one was being pulled by a hummer and they had turned the hummer into Santa Clause. It had a beard, eyebrows that moved, and a big Santa hat, I tried to get a picture of it, but it drove by to fast. We did have an enjoyable time being with friends and family and Avery loved what we did see of the parade.

Waiting for the parade to come our way.

On Sunday night we were able to go out and look at houses that have been decorated for Christmas. It was such a nice family outing, Avery really enjoyed all the pretty lights and Emmabelle just loved being out of the house.

One more little tidbit. On Sunday afternoon we were sitting around and Dave and I had been talking about his parents and all the sudden Avery said, "Heavenly Father is sad." I asked her why Heavenly Father is sad and her relpy was, "Because Papa and Grandma won't come see me." I thought that it was the cutest thing I have ever heard. She really gets sad when she talks to them on the phone and they can't come and see her at that exact moment. Apparently she has also picked up on my trying to teach her about doing things that will make Heavenly Father and Jesus happy. Most the time it is when we are talking about going to church and she doesn't want to go. I tell her that if we don't go it will make them sad. It just goes to show how her little mind works and that she knows how to apply things in her little mind.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

On Friday night we were able to begin the Christmas season. We went to Home Depot and bought the cutest little live tree we could find then went home and proceeded to decorate it. I am very adamant about having live trees. Avery was very much in the middle of the whole process. She loved being able to put the ornaments on and was very excited about the lights.

Avery before the tree was decorated.

Emmabelle had such a good time just watching all the commotion.

The girls getting ready for the fun to begin.Avery learning how to put ornaments on the tree.

It didn't take her long to become a pro.

This is what Emmabelle found to do while we were busy decorating the tree. It is hard to tell, but it is wrapped around her from head to toe. At one point it was around her little neck. She had a blast.

My husband is so nice and has let it become my tradition to top the tree. It was his idea to use a Santa hat though. This is the second year we have used it and we really like it.

The girls and I with the finished product.

The Hartman family with our cute little tree.

Ambrosia's Birthday Party

On Saturday Avery attended her friend Ambrosia's birthday party. It was quite the party. The theme was Sleeping Beauty. Each girl got a Sleeping Beauty dress, and the two boys that came got armor so they could be knights. There was a jumping castle, a blow up dragon for the knights to slay, and a pinata. They also had in their back yard a swing set, and a little playhouse. There was definately plenty for the children to do. After we ate lunch and broke the pinata we had cake and ice cream. Actually Rose's dad had to break the pinata. After the kids had their fill of swinging at it he busted it open. It was really cute to watch them attempt to break it, keep in mind these are two and three year olds. The one boy that gave it a try actually put a hole in it, most of the girls barely even tapped it. I am proud to say that Avery actually got in a couple of good swings for being so small. She thought it was pretty fun. When it was time to come home Avery got her own gift bag with a ton of goodies in it, and her own little personal Sleeping Beauty cake to go with it.

Avery in the jumping castle. It took her few minutes to warm up but she really enjoyed it once she finally got in it.This is just a picture of the whole castle. It was really cute. That is Avery that you can see in the picture.

Avery swinging at the pinata.

Keanan, Emma, Camilla, Rose (in the back), Lydia, Avery, and Beau

Emma is the only on that isn't in Avery's nursery class.

A Day at the Zoo

On Friday we were able to take the girls to the zoo. We debated on going to zoo lights, but decided that just going to see the animals was probably enough. We went with James' family and Dan and Sarah also joined us. The weather was perfect. We were worried about rain, but all we had was nice cloud cover to keep it nice and cool. We couldn't have asked for a better day. This was Avery's first time to the zoo, and she just loved it. She got so excited about all the animals and loved running around with her cousins. Emmabelle did really well just riding in the stroller and taking in all the scenery. She isn't quite old enough to get overly excited about the animals yet, but she just enjoys being outside.

This is the girls waiting in line to get tickets to the zoo.

Really we only had to pay for Dave and I.

Dave and Avery watching the elephant eat.

It is really amazing to watch them use their trunks.Annie and Avery at the elephants.

The Orangutans. I guess it is pretty rare for all four of them to be out at one time. They have a daddy, mommy, baby, and a grandma. They were very active while we were there. The baby was all over the place climbing and doing summersaults. It was really fun to watch. This is in the monkey village. You actually go into the place were they keep these little monkeys and watch them run and jump through the trees chasing each other. It is neat to get to see them so close up. This is a little play area that they have near the petting zoo. They call it Harmony Farms. It is all Fisher Price Little People stuff. It was really cute. Emmabelle enjoyed playing in the dry dirt in the barn.

Here is another picture of Emmabelle through a side window of the barn.

They also had a slide that was just perfect for Avery she could do it all by herself.
This is at the petting zoo. They have this large area where they let all the goats out and you can go in and brush them. They are so tame. Most of them hardly even move. They just lay around and let the kids climb all over them. Avery did surprisingly well. She really liked the goats. They also have some sheep, and a miniture ox, it was very tame also.
Emmabelle also enjoyed exploring the goats.
She liked to pet them and feel their ruff hair.
Avery and Uncle Dan at the Giraffes.

We were able to have a picnic lunch at the zoo and then after that we went back to James and Sylvia's house and played some more with the cousins. All in all we had a really nice trip to the valley.